RI ‘should escalate’ maid abuse cases to UN body

After Saudi Arabia officially stopped hiring maids from Indonesia on Saturday, the fate of thousands of women across Indonesia waiting to work in the kingdom is uncertain.

Critics in Indonesia were quick to call Saudi Arabia’s decision a retaliatory move, as it was made just days after the Indonesian government declared it would refuse to allow its citizens to go to Saudi Arabia until human rights conditions there improved.

Indonesia issued the moratorium, which takes effect on Aug. 1, after an Indonesian maid was executed by beheading in Saudi Arabia last month.

The ban has also left officials and diplomats from the two countries in limbo, with further negotiations on a memorandum of understanding demanded by Indonesia to better protect its workers stalled for now.

Human rights activists and experts expressed concern for the fate of thousands of workers left stranded by the Saudi ban and the stalled negotiations, saying it could lead to the continued abuse of Indonesian workers already in the kingdom.

They demanded the government compensate stranded migrant workers as most of them were from poor families and had spent millions of rupiah to secure jobs abroad.

Activists also called on President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to escalate the human rights cases to the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC), of which Indonesia is a member.

“There are numerous examples of abuse cases, some even leading to the death of our workers. So it is only natural that we are worried about our workers if we don’t have an MoU to better protect them,” University of Indonesia law professor Hikmahanto Juwana said.

“I think the government should bring the case to the UNHRC to demand the Saudi government give at least the same protection to our workers as they do their own citizens.”

“We can also question why the Saudi government is limiting people’s freedom of movement by banning our domestic workers. That is a violation of human rights,” he added.

There are an estimated 1.5 millions Indonesian maids currently working in the kingdom.

For years, international human rights organizations have criticized Saudi Arabia for its treatment of migrant workers. A 2011 Human Rights Watch report notes that domestic workers from Indonesia “frequently endure forced confinement, food deprivation and severe psychological, physical and sexual abuse”.

Twenty-three Indonesians are on death row in the kingdom.

Bank Indonesia said 58,335 workers were sent to Saudi Arabia in April this year. Last year, Indonesia sent 228,890 workers to the kingdom.

“That figures show that thousands of Indonesians from low-income backgrounds are awaiting visas to Saudi Arabia. The government must find ways to handle them. They can be sent to other countries or be compensated so they can earn a living here,” human rights activist Hendardi said.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Michael Tene confirmed the Indonesian government had been notified last Thursday of changes in Saudi Arabia’s visa policy, but said the policy only served to enforce Indonesia’s moratorium.

“That policy change is in line with our moratorium policy,” he said.

Michael added that the Saudi government had not informed Indonesia that talks over the MoU to protect migrant workers had been put on hold.